Tippett avoids serious ankle damage

First reported by the AFL website, Kurt Tippett has suffered ligament damage in his left ankle after a heady landing, avoiding bone damage, on Friday night against the Western Bulldogs.

He will have scans to confirm the extent of the injury, but the club is confident that he has not broken the fibular bone in his left leg, as first feared. The ruckman landed awkwardly on his left foot in the first quarter and left the field for treatment. He returned to field, and rolled it almost immediately, finishing the game on the bench.

“There’s no break there so that’s a good sign, so they’re just looking at the ligament damage now,” Longmire said.

“(It was) obviously not ideal losing him so early, but the good thing is there’s no break there, from what I hear.”

The injury was ill timed and it left the Swans short on rotations. Sam Reid stepped up manfully, kicking 6 goals and taking on the ruck duties with Sam Naismith. The injury provides the perfect opportunity for new recruit D’Arcy Cameron and super star Callum Sinclair to get an extended run in the team.